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Freedom of association is the individual right to come together with
other individuals and collectively express, promote, pursue and
defend common interests.The right to freedom of association has
been included in a number of national constitutions and human
rights instruments, including the US
constitution and the European
Convention on Human Rights.

The right to freedom of association is sometimes used
interchangeably with the freedom of
assembly. More specifically the freedom of assembly is
understood in a political context, although depending on the source
(constitution, human rights instrument
etc) the right to freedom of association may be understood to
include the right to freedom of
assembly.

Concept

Democracy and Civil Society

Jeremy McBride argues that respect
for the freedom of association by all public authorities and the
exercising of this freedom by all sections of society are essential
both to establish a "genuine democracy"
and to ensure that, once achieved, it remains "healthy and
flourishing". In this regard he sees the formation of political
parties as a significant manifestation of the freedom of
association.

The freedom of association is however not only exercised in the
political sense, but also for a vast array of interests - such as
culture, recreation, sport and social and humanitarian assistance.
Jeremey McBride agues that the formation of non-governmental
organisations (NGOs), which he equates with
civil society, is the "fruit of
associational activity".

Libertarian

Freedom of association is a term popular in libertarian literature. It is used to describe
the concept of absolute freedom to live in a community or be part
of an organization whose values or culture are closely related to one's preferences;
or, on a more basic level, to associate with any individual one
chooses.

The libertarian concept of freedom of
association is often rebuked from a moral/ethical context. Under
laws in such a system, business owners could refuse service to
anyone for whatever reason. Opponents argue that such practices are
regressive and would lead to greater prejudice within society.
Right-libertarians sympathetic to freedom of association, such as
Richard Epstein, respond that in a
case of refusing service (which thus is a case of the freedom of
contract) unjustified discrimination incurs a cost and therefore a
competitive disadvantage. Left-libertarians argue that such refusal
would place those businesses at an economic disadvantage to those
that provide services to all, making them less profitable and
eventually leading them to close down.

Libertarians also argue that freedom of association, in a political
context, is merely the extension of the right to determine with
whom to associate in one's personal life. For example, somebody who
valued good manners or etiquette may not
relish associating with someone who was not decent or was uncouth.
Or, a homophobe probably would not enjoy
associating with gay people. In both instances,
a person is voluntarily deciding with whom to associate, based on
his/her own volition. Libertarians believe that freedom of
association, in the political sphere, is not such a fanciful or
unrealistic notion, since individual human
beings already choose with whom they would like to associate
based on a variety of reasons.

Constitutions

South African Constitution - Bill of Rights

The South African
Constitution's Bill of Rights enshrines the right to freedom of
association in Section 18, which states “Everyone has the right to
freedom of association.” Furthermore Section 17 states “Everyone
has the right, peacefully and unarmed, to assemble, to demonstrate,
to picket and to present petitions”, effectively enshrining the
right freedom of assembly.
Workers' right to freedom of association in terms of the right to
form trade unions and collective bargaining is recognised
separately, in Section 23.

Intimate Associations

A fundamental element of personal
liberty is the right to choose to enter into and maintain
certain intimate human relationships. These intimate human
relationships are known as "intimate associations." The
paradigmatic "intimate association" is the family.

Expressive Associations

Expressive associations are groups that engage in activities
protected by the First Amendment—speech, assembly, petitioning government for a
redress of grievances, and the free exercise of religion.

Limitation

However, the implicit First Amendment right of association in the
U.S.Constitution has been limited by court
rulings. For example, it is illegal in the United States to
consider race in the making and enforcement of private contracts
other than marriage or taking affirmative action. This limit on freedom
of association results from Section 1981 of Title 42 of the
United States Code, as balanced
against the First
Amendment in the 1976 decision of Runyon v.McCrary.

The holding of Runyon is that the defendant private
schools were free to express and teach their views, such
as white separatism, but could not
discriminate on the basis of race in the provision of
services to the general public. So, if the plaintiff African-American children wished to attend
such private schools, and
were clearly qualified in all respects (but race) and were able to
pay the fees, and were willing to attend despite
the fact that the school's professed principles were inconsistent
with admitting them, then the schools were required by Section 1981
to admit them. This doctrine rests on the interpretation of a
private contract as a "badge" of slavery
when either party considers race in choosing the other.

Workers' Freedom of Association

The organization of labor was commonly resisted during the 19th
century, with even relatively liberal countries such as the United
Kingdom banning it for various periods (in the UK's case, between
1820 and 1824).

In the international labour movement, the freedom of association is
a right identified under international labour standards as the
right of workers to organize and collectively bargain. Freedom of
association, in this sense, is recognized as a fundamental human
right by a number of documents including the Universal Declaration of
Human Rights and International Labor
Organization
Convention C87 and Convention
C98 -- two of the eight fundamental, core international labour
standards. 'Freedom of association' can also refer to legal bans on
private contracts negotiated between a private employer and their
employees requiring workers at a particular workplace to join a
union as a term and condition of employment. Supporters of this
sort of private freedom of association claim that the right to join
a union incorporates a right not to join a union. In the United States, the term 'right to work' is more common for this
type of law.